


Sweetest Devotion

by Roxy206



Series: The Holiday Collection [3]
Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Holidays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:54:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29453370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roxy206/pseuds/Roxy206
Summary: Some Valentine's Day Brio fluff:"I love you," he said, his voice thick with emotion.Something about the way he said it felt different, stronger.
Relationships: Beth Boland/Rio
Series: The Holiday Collection [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2080740
Comments: 23
Kudos: 78





	Sweetest Devotion

Two shoeboxes sat on the counter covered in construction paper, glitter, and hearts. Beth had supervised Jane and Emma as they liberally used glue to stick the decorations to their Valentine's Day mail boxes, watching as more glitter stuck to the newspaper she had set down on the counter than anywhere else. She had resisted the urge to step in, instead focusing on writing out the names of Jane's classmates on cards. Her daughters had chatted away to each other, speculating about what goodies their friends might bring into school the next day. 

She frowned as she looked at the gluten free cookies she had baked, large containers full of gluten free, nut free treats waiting to be passed out. She had told herself it was a battle that wasn't worth fighting. It still bothered her though, the way all of the other moms acted like it was the end of the world if there was any slight change. None of the kids had gluten or nut allergies, but they had always made sure to be so careful and it was all they knew. 

She supposed she understood where they were coming from. She too had stuck to the status quo for so long. Hell, she had been the one leading the charge more often than not. 

It seemed so trivial. There was no lasting impact. She knew once her kids were grown, out of school, no one would care what had or hadn't been in a baked good she made. She would keep up the facade though, never knowing when she might need to be in someone's good graces, keeping up the appearance of a clean track record so no one looked too closely. 

Turning away from the containers she leaned against the kitchen island. There were more important things to think about, she reminded herself. Her eyes shifted down and she reached out to pick up the card. She traced the letters on the red envelope she'd found on the counter, "Elizabeth" scrawled out in his handwriting. She had been surprised, impressed even, considering it was two days before Valentine's Day. 

It was a simple card: There was a heart on the front, the inside blank except for his chicken scratch. She didn't expect any sweeping declarations or grand gestures. What she found was a message telling her to meet him at his place on Sunday followed by an "I love you." She couldn't help but smile to herself, hearing the words in his voice. It amused her that it was a phrase he used so often. 

At first she had wondered if he was doing it to throw her off, but he kept telling her frequently that he loved her until she realized it was part of who he was to be so vocal about it. He told her at the end of all of their phone calls. The day she heard Mick in the background as she was hanging up, giving him shit for being so soft, she knew. 

And it felt good. No, it felt wonderful. It wasn't just that it was all new and exciting. It was the way he cared, the way he valued her and her opinion. It was the way he let her be her own person, that he didn't expect her to bend to his every whim and do as he said. Well, not when it came to their relationship at least. He didn't expect it when it came to business either, not really, even though it didn't stop him from trying. 

She tried not to make comparisons, but it was inevitable. It had taken her a while to start unpacking everything that had happened with Dean after trying to ignore it for so long. Even now she would still get hit with a memory, let it actually come to the forefront of her mind, and she would wonder what the hell she had been thinking. 

With Valentine's Day a couple days away her mind drifted, a conversation with Dean popping up. The two of them looking at a photo from a Valentine's Day past. She had looked at the photo and saw a version of them who had been in a better place, a better place as far as she knew at the time. He had looked at the photo and she wasn't quite sure what he saw. His comments about her wearing jeans had come from a place of insecurity, she knew that now. But all the same, he looked at that photo and it was all so superficial. He accused her of not putting in effort for him when she had spent the entirity of her relationship doing just that, up until the end. 

Rio didn't care whether she wore a dress, jeans, or even her pajamas. He may have mused about the ease of access certain outfits provided, but ultimately it didn't matter to him how she wanted to dress. He was more focused on what was inside, both under her clothes and in her head. She was finding it shockingly easy to let him in. 

+++ 

She stood in front of his building with a bag full to the brim in one hand, her purse on the opposite shoulder with a card and a gift box tucked inside. Instead of hearing the buzz of him letting her into the building his voice came over the intercom telling her that he would be right down. She stared at him as he let the door close behind him rather than holding it open for her. 

"What are you doing?" she asked him. 

"Hi. Happy Valentine's Day to you, too." 

She rolled her eyes at the sarcasm. "Hi," she said as he took the bag from her hand. "Happy Valentine's Day."

"That's better," he said before kissing her cheek. 

She grabbed the edge of his shirt before he could pull back, keeping him in place so she could kiss him. "Hi," she said again, her voice a whisper. It had only been a few days since she had last seen him, but she had missed seeing him in person. 

"What are we doing outside?" she asked. 

"Got a gift for you," he replied. 

He pulled a small box out of his pocket and she was a little relieved to see it wasn't a jewelry box this time. She had tried to talk to him about gifts, still feeling a bit embarrassed that she had given him a hat when he had bought her a necklace, even if he had been wearing it all winter. He had waved off her worries and insisted that it didn't matter what they spent. She supposed it didn't matter much when they were printing and washing fake cash. 

Opening the box she had to stifle a laugh, not wanting him to think there was anything wrong with the gift. There was absolutely nothing wrong with it, in fact. She understood why he had closed the door behind him as she lifted the key out of the box, a silver bar dangling from the keyring with her name stamped into it alongside a key fob to get into the building. 

"So you don't have to wait for me if you're coming over," he told her. 

"I love it," she said. She took a step closer to him, watching as his eyes crinkled. "I love you." 

Her lips were on his again, lightly brushing against them. Her heart skipped a beat when she felt his arm slide around her waist. Sometimes she couldn't believe they were at this point, an actual couple. They'd chosen this, to not only give in to the connection between them, but to build on it. 

A car alarm started going off down the street, breaking them from their reverie. He placed a kiss on her forehead before letting her go. 

"Try it out," he told her. 

She brought the key fob up to the sensor, rewarded with the sound of the door unlocking. 

After settling down on the couch in his apartment she passed him the card and gift box she had brought with her. As he read the card he stroked her knee with his thumb absentmindedly, only lifting his hand away when she motioned for him to open the box. She grinned when he picked up the set of keys, a brown leather strap connected to the keyring. 

"I know you don't really need them, but I wanted you to have them." She had hoped that he would understand the gesture, the meaning behind giving him the keys to her house even though he had no trouble getting in without them. She wanted him to know how welcome he was in her life. 

He turned the keys over in his hand before looking at her. She could feel the intensity of his gaze and she knew that she'd hit the mark. He dropped the keys, his hands running up the sides of her legs. 

"I love you," he said, his voice thick with emotion. 

Something about the way he said it felt different, stronger. 

He shifted closer to her, his arms circling around her. She leaned into him, her head against his shoulder. They sat together in silence, their breath the only sound they made. 

It dawned on her that there was no where she would rather be. They hadn't made reservations anywhere and she was glad. She knew she was in love with him; she had meant it every time she had said "I love you" from the very first time. But there was a gravity to his words, to the way she felt, like he had unlocked something in her. 

She hadn't known that love could be like this. She had seen the sparks of it between Annie and Gregg before the weight of reality came crashing down on them, the two of them too young and too naive to know how to work on their relationship. She was a witness to the deep connection between Ruby and Stan, their love weathered but holding strong over the years. For so long she had thought it was something for others, not for her. She thought maybe it was something she wasn't capable of, that maybe she was too broken to love and be loved like that. 

She hadn't been looking, wouldn't have known what to look for. But he'd found her. He hadn't given up on her when she pushed him away. 

He saw her in ways no one else did and instead of running he got closer. He made her feel at home - in his arms, in her own skin, in his heart as well as in her own. 

She tightened her arms around him and smiled when he squeezed her in response. 

+++ 

Clad in jeans and a t-shirt she stood in front of the closet. All she had asked for was a drawer. She was sick of carrying a bag back and forth with her full of toiletries, clothes, and her pajamas. Just one drawer, so she could leave a few things at his place. 

She stood in front of the closet, a hand on her hip. Just the other day it had been full of his clothes, his shoes, everything in a row waiting for him to pick it out. Now half of his things had been moved. 

"You know, you didn't have to do this!" she yelled out to him. 

She heard the rumble of his laugh before she saw him enter the room. 

"I know, darlin'. Kinda glad I did though seeing you all riled up."

"I'm not riled up," she replied. 

His hand slipped over hers on her hip as he stood behind her. 

"Okay," he said. 

She turned around to face him, bringing her arms up around his neck. 

"I'm not."

"Wanted to make sure you have enough room. One drawer, that's not enough space. Gotta make sure you can lay out your panties so you can get a new pair once yours are all wet." 

"Don't say panties," she mumbled as his mouth went to her neck. 

His voice was in her ear. "I didn't hear you complaining earlier. Remember, when my head was between your legs."

She marveled at how much she wanted him when he could be so infuriating. Maybe sometimes because he was infuriating. His talent seemed to be bringing out an array of fervent emotions in her. 

His hand had dipped between her legs, his fingers pressing on the seam of her jeans. And in the moment she didn't care that he was right, that he would probably gloat later about making her wet while she was still dressed. She knew she would have more than enough chances to bring up how she turned him on. 

What she wanted now was for him to take her to bed, for her name to be on his lips as they reached the peak. 

A memory crossed her mind of an early conversation they'd had about what someone like her was doing with someone like him. In her wildest dreams she had never thought his suggestion would come true. Well, maybe in her wildest dreams she had been thinking about him hitting it before it had happened for the first time. And after. It was being able to say that they were making love being true that she never would have guessed. 

Making love, a key to his place, half of his closet. 

He let go of her in order to lead her to the bed, his hands on her again as soon as they hit the mattress, and she smiled. 

She didn't think anyone would have believed her at the beginning if she had said what they were doing was falling in love. All that mattered now was that the two of them were in this together. 

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day! (or as my phone has been auto suggesting all day - Happy Valentine's Day fic 😂)
> 
> We all know I love to steal a song title for a fic title, so it should be no surprise that Sweetest Devotion is after the Adele song. This particular lyric really stuck with me so I wanted to share it:
> 
> And there is something 'bout the way you love me  
> That finally feels like home


End file.
